13 Important Reasons Why Your Kid Should Have a Cell Phone

In today’s society, it seems like nearly every young person has a cell phone. Whether it’s a teen, or even a child who isn’t even in high school yet, it seems like no matter the age everyone has a cell phone. This raises the question as a parent if you should get your own child a cell phone. We’ve all heard the good and the bad and the reasons why it could be bad, but it seems like not many people ever talk about the good.

In fact, there are more than enough good reasons why you should get your child or teen a cell phone. Reasons that are beneficial not only to them but to you and the rest of your family as well. If you’re looking into getting a cell phone for you child, don’t be scared of all the negative things you hear, because there’s many positives that you’re about to hear about today.

01. Safety

It’s been mentioned multiple times already in this article, but a biggest benefit of giving your child a cell phone is safety. In case of an emergency, you can always know that they’ll be able to contact either you or the authorities if they need help. There may be a moment where they drastically need help, such as looking up directions on how to get home, and having a cell phone will allow them to search up the right directions on how to get there.

Teaching your child about emergency services is also another great reason for safety. They can know when and if they should call which service, and know not to abuse it if they don’t really need it. Knowing that your child can call the police if in danger is always a good feeling, knowing that they’ll be safe if something bad ever were to happen.

02. Reassurance for Your Child

If your child has a cell phone, it’s a great way for them to feel more reassured of their own safety. If they have to walk home from school or be alone during the day, knowing that they have a cell phone on them is a great way to make them feel safe and secure no matter what. It definitely helps them to feel more safe knowing that they have a way to contact you or other family members in case of an emergency or if there’s any problem at all.

Think of a situation where your child feels unsafe while walking home or while waiting for you to come home from work. They may feel like someone is following them or there’s a threat to the house, and having a way to contact you immediately will possibly prevent anything bad from happening. There may also be a situation where your child simply needs to ask your help with something, and in this case it would be great to provide them with a cell phone.

03. Reminders

Having a cell phone can give your child the ability to create reminders to help them remember important dates, tasks, and even assignments that need to be done for school. Reminders can help them to be more responsible with their schedule and plan out exactly what needs to be done when and at what times specifically. Most of the times, schools give out planners or require that you buy one for your child for the school year. Rather than doing that, a smaller and more portable version is using the planners available on a cell phone.

Another little bonus is that your child can set alarms whenever they’d like to. They can set it in the mornings to wake themselves up for school or ensure that they don’t sleep in too late on the weekends. They can also set alarms in order to remind themselves to do something, like homework or a task they forgot.

04. Having a Cell Phone Teaches Responsibility

Some parents may believe that having a cell phone is a way of teaching children that they don’t have to be responsible and take care of their other daily tasks such as chores around the house or homework. This is in fact untrue, because having a cell phone will actually teach them that they need to be responsible for something other than themselves. It’s a great way to teach them to stay in control of their own possessions while also taking care of other tasks that need to be done.

Another way that it teaches responsibility is if they happen to be misbehaving or dismissing their work that needs to be done. If this is the case, as a parent you can limit their cell phone usage or take it away until they’ve finished their tasks that need to be completed. This can teach your child that they can’t just play around on their phone all day, and that they must continue to be responsible and take care of the jobs that need to be done.

Don’t forget that even if you do get your child a cell phone, you’re still in control of them and you are the parent. Don’t be afraid to take away their phone if they aren’t behaving properly or taking care of their daily tasks.

05. Global Positioning System (GPS)

All cell phones come with a GPS, and this can help in case your child is lost or doesn’t know where they are. This can help them to figure out just how far a certain place is or to find out what’s near them. Having a GPS is beneficial to not only children and teens, but we all know that it’s beneficial to everyone to be able to know where they are at all times.

Mentioned previously, you can also track the GPS in your child’s phone in case you need to know where they are or they aren’t responding to your calls and texts. It’s an easy way to find where they are at whatever time you need to.

06. Keep in Touch With Friends

An obvious and great reason to get a cell phone for your child is so that they can keep in touch with their friends. Growing up without a cell phone might make it more difficult to keep in touch considering most teens and even some younger children have a cell phone. Having a phone makes it easy to communicate with friends just like it would for an adult. It’s easier to plan when to hangout, talk to them about whatever they’d like, or simply just ask what’s up and see how they’re doing.

For all the reasons you have a cell phone for yourself, your child can benefit from having a cell phone for all those same reasons. Of course maybe not exactly the same reasons such as for work and business, but they can much more easily contact friends for whatever reasons. It can also help them connect to new friends a lot easier. If they suffer from social anxieties or find it harder to make friends in person, having a cell phone is a great way for them to make that connection with other people and become great friends and even possibly overcome their fears.

07. Peace of Mind for You as a Parent

As a parent with a child or a young teen that’s constantly growing older and wanting to go out more, it’s inevitable that you won’t always know where they are. Knowing that you can call, text, or even track the GPS on their phone though is a great way to give you that peace of mind in knowing you can always reach them no matter what. Even if you can’t get a hold of them right away, you’ll still know that they have a phone where they can contact you or anyone else in case of emergency.

Being able to communicate with your child no matter the place or time is very beneficial and safe especially for when your child starts to grow up to their teen years. If something ever were to happen to them, or you simply just want to text them to let them know something, having a cell phone is most beneficial to the both of you.

08. Take Pictures and Videos

Letting your child have a cell phone also allows them to take pictures and videos of whatever they want to which enables them to create more memories or help them remember something. There could be a piece of homework they want to take a picture of, an incredible art piece they made, or even a video of themselves and their friends doing something silly and fun. Whatever the reason, allowing them to create these memories themselves is a great reason to get them a phone.

09. Stay Connected With Extended Family

If your family may not all live in the same city or area, or maybe family members are on vacation or possibly been deployed, having a phone will greatly benefit your child in being able to keep that close connection with them. It would be nearly impossible to keep a good relationship with family members that your child sees once in a blue moon, so getting them a cell phone allows them to stay in touch with them.

Whatever the reason family isn’t close by, you can be happy knowing that your child is staying in touch with loved ones. As we all know, it’s important to have a special bond with family members and loved ones, so allowing your child to continue to build that connection with extended family is great in so many ways for them.

10. Games

Cell phones are fully loaded with so many games in their app store, and your child can definitely benefit from being able to have fun playing some games. Whether they’re bored or alone, or even just looking for something to do, playing a fun game on their phone can help keep them occupied. On top of that they can also play some educational games that help them learn and educate themselves.

Being honest with yourself, you know that your child is going to ask for a cell phone eventually one day. It’s inevitable, and they’ll most likely stop at nothing to get their own way. While you can continue to say no, one day they’re going to end up getting a cell phone no matter what so you might as well get them one now and teach them how to properly use it safely instead of getting themselves into trouble.

As long as you well educate your child on the proper uses of a cell phone, you can ensure that they’ll know how to use it properly and not abuse it, especially if you place rules around it.

12. School

While most parents may not realize it, a lot of school work can be done online using a cell phone. There may be webpages they need to access for research and information, and having a phone would be a great tool for them to use. They can jot down notes using their notepad app, and even type their assignments completely online. Some teachers have their students submit work online, and if that’s the case for your child then it would be perfect for them to have a cell phone to do work and submit it to their teacher.

Your child can even get pictures of missed assignments from their other classmates. If your child or teen misses a day of school, they’ve more than likely missed homework and projects that they need to work on. Having a cell phone will help them be able to communicate with friends and classmates to stay up to date on work.

13. Social Media

Some parents may see social media as a negative to giving your child a phone, but it can be in fact a great way of expression for their feelings and interests. As your child grows up and into their teen years, it becomes a lot harder for them to express themselves to you and others, so being able to have social media as an outlet can really help them to find themselves and be the person that they want to be.

We hope this article has shown you the many reasons and benefits to getting your child a phone, and we hope that this helps make your decision more clear.